Sloan, Change of Heart and Dream Warriors talk Junos

As part of the run-up to the 40th annual Juno Awards this March, organizers have been arranging a series of concerts to promote the history of Canadian music. This Saturday, a concert at Toronto’s Horseshoe Tavern will feature ’90s icons such as Lowest of the Lowest, The Rheostatics and Michie Mee. To discuss that decade’s particular brand of music, the Post’s Ben Kaplan assembled Sloan’s Chris Murphy, Ian Blurton from Change of Heart and King Lou from Dream Warriors — all musicians who will be performing at Saturday’s concert — and asked them to dish on some ’90s dirt.

Q

:

Were the Junos ever a goal for your bands?

Chris

: I want to win a lifetime achievement award at the Junos the same year we win a best new artist award at the Grammys.

Ian

: The Junos had nothing to do with us whatsoever.

Chris

: I remember thinking, “If I play the Junos, what will Ian Blurton think?”

Lou

: We went to the Junos and I sat beside Stompin’ Tom [Connors], who I came to find out was this old Canadian legend, and he was just as uncomfortable to be there as myself. He said, “Don’t worry, we’ll get through this.” He was just as deep into his stuff as I was with mine.

Chris

: We played the Junos and Celine Dion was there and she seems like this 85-year-old woman, but she was asking people if she had anything in her teeth. I thought, “She’s like a human being!” Then I realized I was fooled.

Ian

: What do you mean?

Chris

: I don’t think she is.

Q

:

Can you describe the music industry of the ’90s?

Chris:

For our first record, we’d take things that had come out two months before, copy it and then put out our own horrible version. Looking back, it’s almost cute, but we made a decision afterwards to be timeless. We should’ve been more of the times. I would’ve been more successful.

Lou

: I used to sing background for Michie Mee, and Ivan, her manager, overheard me do my own thing. I was in the bathroom when Ivan confronted me and I did a verse. If I didn’t do that verse, I wouldn’t have gone anywhere.

Ian

: We were influenced by the American and British stuff coming out. Being from Toronto, that’s how you got new music then.

Chris

: In 1991, when Nirvana broke, we were ready to go. And then when we got a call from Geffen, Nirvana’s label, and it meant a lot to the band. We weren’t just a Nirvana knock-off if Nirvana’s label was calling us up.

Ian

: We loved Nirvana, but hated Pearl Jam.

Chris

: We all celebrated their anti-professionalism, but then Kurt Cobain died and it was like, “Now what?”

Q

:

Is it hard for a band to age after making it in the ’90s?

Chris

: When I was young and cool I thought the Junos were old and square. Anne Murray, what? Basically, we became less hip and now we’re Anne Murray, and I can’t get on the show because I’m not in freaking Broken Social Scene.

Lou:

We became sort of alternative rap and things got strange with the Junos. I can’t remember, but one year some rock band won the hip hop category.

Chris

: Stompin’ Tom?

Lou

: Dream Warriors always liked Sloan.

Chris

: People look back and remember when

Underwhelmed

came out, probably when they were in Grade 2. But as of February, our band is 20 years old. It’s the same four guys — whatever, we’re still here.

Lou

: It’s 20 years for us, too.

Ian

: Let me know if you guys need a new guitarist.

Lou

: I give you props on the glasses, Chris. You never got LASIK surgery.

Chris

: I’ve been saving up for the past 20 years.

• Ian Blurton’s band C’mon released Beyond the Pale Horse last November. King Lou of Dream Warriors is currently working on new music. All of Sloan’s music is available at sloanmusic.com, and their new record will be out this year. The Junos 40th Anniversary Decades Concert Series takes place at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto on Feb. 5. For tickets and more information, visit junoawards.ca.

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